Jesus knew what to do all the time, and he knew how to go about it. He knew how to serve God in good times and in bad.

In these scriptures from Luke, we continue to follow Jesus on the way to Jerusalem. But for now, the apparent destination of the trip has receded to the background. Something else has caught our attention. For one thing, Jesus' message of announcing the coming of the kingdom of God is being met with increasing curiosity. There is, at the same time, growing hostility to what Jesus has to say and an increasing acceptance of his message.

For this reason, the mission of Jesus must be enlarged. The scope of Jesus' work must be broadened. More workers must be recruited to get the good news out. So Jesus decides to appoint seventy (or 72 according to some sources) to share in the job. The mission will be the same mission that Jesus has had all along. But now, these new disciples will also announce the kingdom. The only difference is that now there will be more help to carry it out than Jesus and the twelve disciples could manage by themselves.

If it's the same mission, it's also the same strategy. Jesus sent these new missionaries in pairs to the very places he himself intended to go. He didn't just turn them loose and say, "Now sink or swim! Go find your own mission field." No, the way Jesus went about it is much like the way Donald Trump does with his apprentices. The apprentices' task, while daunting and always with a deadline attached to it, is also well-defined. Success or failure will readily be apparent, as is the way in which they have all worked together. That's also the way we see Jesus going about it in this story from Luke.

Nor does Jesus sugarcoat the job. He does not stoop to doing what we in the church have sometimes been guilty of to get someone to take a position of leadership. Jesus does not say, "Oh, there's nothing to it. You'll love it!" Jesus wants his disciples to know what they're getting into. So much so, that in some ways it's a rather bleak picture that he paints for them. "The harvest is plentiful." That is, the time is ripe — but there's a catch — "but the laborers are few" (Luke 10:2). And those that do sign up for the job need to know that at times the working conditions are not all that good. They can be fraught with danger. It's not an easy task Jesus is calling for. "See I am sending you like lambs into the midst of wolves" (Luke 10:3b).

He does give them some advice, though, about how they are to go about it. They are to travel light. "No purse, no bag, no sandals" (Luke 10:4a). They are not to take anything that could hold them back. They are on an urgent mission, and they do not have the time to dillydally and engage in meaningless chitchat. "And greet no one on the road" (Luke 10:4b). In other words, let nothing distract you from the mission.

When I think about dillydallying on the job, I'm reminded of that precious scene in Gone With The Wind. You know, the one where Prissy has been sent to fetch the doctor to deliver Miss Melanie's baby. But the good doctor can't be worried with such. After all, it's in the middle of the Civil War, and he has more urgent matters to take care of, like binding up the wounds of the casualties. After hearing this from the doctor, you'd think that Prissy would rush right back to tell Miss Scarlet. But, no, she takes her own good time, meandering along the picket fences, singing as she goes. The click-clack of the stick in her hand along the fence serves as a percussion instrument to her voice.

During the building of an addition to a church, each morning when the pastor arrived, one of the construction workers wanted to talk about the Bible instead of doing the work he was assigned. After a few mornings of that, the pastor said to him, "I'd love to talk about the Bible with you, but not now when you're supposed to be working on this project. Make an appointment with me, and we can talk all you want." The worker never did. It was much more fun to talk on the job. It was a much more respectful way to goof-off. "That's not the way to go about the Lord's business," Jesus tells these seventy, and us.

What then are we to do? How are we to conduct ourselves? As we minister in the name of Jesus, we are to do as he did. We are to give everyone the benefit of the doubt. "Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this house!' And if anyone is there who shares in peace, your peace will rest on that person; but if not, it will return to you. Remain in the same house, eating and drinking whatever they provide, for the laborer deserves to be paid" (Luke 10:5-6). Likewise, don't go from house to house trying to find better accommodations. Eat what is set before you. Don't go off trying to see if you can find a better place to stay, one with a softer bed and more delicious food. Jesus is simply encouraging them to be good houseguests. Live on their terms. Don't make your host go out of their way for you. It's not bad advice for anyone at anytime, whether we're engaged in work for the church or not.

But what if the people do not welcome you? What do you do then? Jesus is just as specific in this case as he was before with those who were more accepting. The bottom line is to preach the gospel to them also whether they will accept it or not. Say the same thing to these people. "God's kingdom is coming." Then if they won't accept you, leave that place, and find one that is more receptive. A retired minister once put it this way, "Don't continue fishing in a pond where no one has caught a fish for years." The way Jesus put it was much more dramatic. "Wipe off the dust that clings to your feet." Leave the outcome to the judgment of God for their lack of hospitality and receptivity.

When I look at what Jesus is saying and what it might mean for us today, I hear Jesus telling me that how we carry out our mission matters. In the end, how we do it may matter as much as the mission itself. For that's what many times determines whether or not the message gets communicated.

James Dittes, who taught psychology and ministry at YaleDivinitySchool, once gave this advice to young seminarians, "When you meet with opposition, just remember that resistance is a sign of vitality and an occasion for ministry. If people are not taking to what you are trying to do, that means that they are at least still alive. They are not dead yet. Dead people do not talk back." In our better moments, when we run upon an obstacle to what we've been trying to accomplish in our ministry, we tell ourselves, "This is a good sign. The congregation is not dead. Now, all we have to do is figure out what is the proper way to minister to these people."

In the materials many use in premarital counseling sessions prior to the wedding, there is a suggested exercise called "active listening" and "assertiveness." Active listening is an effort to hear what your partner is saying to you. It sometimes helps to be able to put into your own words what the other is saying. That way both you and they have a chance to check it out. Active listening involves putting yourself in their shoes and trying to imagine how you might feel if you were in their place. Assertiveness is a strategy to go out of your way to make yourself abundantly clear. One of the best ways to do this is to send "I messages" rather than "You accusations." An "I message" just states how things are from your end. A "You accusation" has a way of attacking the other person. It almost always raises anxiety, if not hostility. An "I message" says, "I get mad when that happens." A "You accusation" is more like, "You make me mad when you do that." See the difference?

Now, sometimes, there's a little resistance to this exercise, since from day one we've been taught that it's impolite to begin our sentences with I. Yet in interpersonal, especially intimate conversations, it's actually one of the best ways to communicate, if we do it properly, and it's not as easy as it may seem. Some of the "I messages" often heard in these counseling sessions go like this. "I see that it really upsets you when I leave my socks and underwear on the bathroom floor." Or, "I wish you would be a little more romantic." Which translated means, "I would really like for you to surprise me with flowers on my birthday or a surprise evening out just for the two of us." Things like that.

Jesus probably did not have had all this in mind when he sent the seventy out on their mission. But to be fair, I don't think he could have spent much time in psychological exercises that had not yet even been discovered! But there was one thing that he did do that was psychologically sound. He told his followers in no uncertain terms that they should listen carefully enough to find out where the other person was coming from. In this way, the message they were trying to deliver might just get through. But then, if they were to run upon one of those impasses that we are bound to run upon from time to time, in the church and out of it, they were to move on and to be done with it. Have your say, and then leave it to the Holy Spirit to clean up the mess, is the way I'd put it.

What I find particularly intriguing about the instructions Jesus gives these new missionaries, is that while he gives them a pretty tough briefing session, outlining in detail all that could possibly go wrong and how difficult it was going to be, when the seventy return, they are ecstatic about what they have been able to accomplish. They have been successful beyond their wildest expectations. "The seventy returned with joy, saying, ‘Lord, in your name even the demons submit to us!' " (Luke 10:17). When Jesus hears what they have to say, he takes this as a sign that God is having his way in the world. Satan is finally getting his due. And if these seventy think that they are successful now, it will be nothing compared with what they are going to experience later on. They will accomplish more than they may think or believe.

Most readers of these scriptures from Luke do not think Jesus really meant for us to become snake handlers. Some have tried that, of course. However, this is a symbolic way to indicate that the power of evil is being overcome through the mission of Jesus on earth, now as well as back then.

No sooner has Jesus recognized what the seventy have accomplished and rejoiced with them in their success, than he quickly realizes that now there's a potential new problem, one that may be even more difficult to deal with than handling snakes. And that is how to handle all this success. What do you do when you are successful? What do you do when the results come in far better than you had anticipated? Jesus knows and he tells them. Take care that you do not gloat! "Nevertheless, do not rejoice at this, that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven" (Luke 10:20). Don't gloat about what you have done, but give thanks that God approves of what you have done.

At the conclusion of a very successful capital funds campaign in a church, a wise leader from the congregation said to the pastor, "Isn't it amazing how much can get done when we don't care who gets the credit?"

So, how do you minister when you're not welcome (and when you are)? By following Jesus. By being utterly prepared for whatever comes. By being utterly prepared for the worst before you begin and utterly unselfish about taking credit for the success when it's over. Jesus knew that when we do that we are doing our part in bringing in God's kingdom on earth.